Working Hours

News about working hours, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.

Chronology of Coverage

Feb. 26, 2015

Labor activists are putting stronger focus on longstanding demand that retailers like Walmart grant their employees more work hours, and more consistency in scheduling those hours; change of focus comes as Walmart commits to wage increases and other retailers follow suit. MORE

Feb. 22, 2015

Service industry employees are facing serious issue of exhaustion as restaurants, retailers and other businesses shrink time between shifts and cut staff to shave costs; many workers regularly work both late-night and early-morning shifts, leaving little time for family and sleep; pushback by labor advocates has resulted in legislative proposals in several states that would curb maximum number of work hours in a 24-hour period. MORE

Feb. 11, 2015

Decree in southwestern France stating that all bakeries must close one day per week and similar local rules and regulations like it have stoked debate over France's economy, small businesses and traditions; some argue that such rules hurt economic growth, but bakers say that they protect them from overwork and from competition from larger stores. MORE

Jan. 25, 2015

Jeff Sharlet First column reflects on the community of people who use the hashtag 'nightshift' on Instagram to post photos of themselves as they work hours in which other people sleep. MORE

Jan. 9, 2015

House passes bill altering definition of full-time worker under Affordable Care Act from one who works 30 hours per week, to one who works 40 hours; Republicans contend measure will stop businesses with 50 or more employees from cutting worker hours to avoid mandatory health insurance; measure is seen as symbol for Republican efforts to undermine Pres Obama's signature health care act. MORE

Jan. 6, 2015

House will consider first major bill of new Republican Congress that would alter definition of full workweek under Affordable Car Act, to 40 hours instead of 30; conservatives are resisting move, however, saying it would put people at risk of reduced hours. MORE

Nov. 27, 2014

Battle has emerged within Socialist government of French Pres Francois Hollande over whether country should end its nominal 35-hour workweek as part of effort to overcome economic malaise; law has become largely symbolic, with employers making use of loopholes and average workers putting in an actual 35.9 hours, just short of eurozone average. MORE

Sep. 29, 2014

Working long hours may increase the risk for Type 2 diabetes, a new review has found, but the risk is only apparent in workers of lower socioeconomic status. MORE

Sep. 8, 2014

Rachel L Swarns The Working Life column holds examines positive impact that Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union has had on lives of workers at Macy's Herald Square store and other large stores in Manhattan; union has provided stability with guaranteed minimum hours for part-time and full-time employees, and predictable schedules. MORE

Sep. 1, 2014

Flood of lawsuits and government enforcement actions across nation accuse employers of violating minimum wage and overtime laws, erasing work hours and wrongfully taking employees' tips; labor advocates call practices 'wage theft,' and say phenomenon is far too prevalent; many business groups say government officials are drumming up wage enforcement actions in effort to score points with unions. MORE

Aug. 17, 2014

Self-employed workers in the so-called sharing economy, built around companies like Uber, Taskrabbit and Airbnb, have flexibility but enjoy few of the protections of full-time work; online marketplace for such services is growing, but those who work in it often go without health insurance, payroll deductions for Social Security and unemployment benefits. MORE

Aug. 15, 2014

Starbucks announces revisions to way it schedules its 130,000 baristas in effort to bring more stability and consistency to employee work hours; changes come in response to New York Times article about single mother struggling to keep up with erratic hours set by automated scheduling software. MORE

Aug. 14, 2014

More low-income parents are struggling with chaos of juggling work and family responsibilities because of ever-changing work schedules determined by scheduling software; single-mother Jannette Navarro, who commutes three hours to work at Starbucks in San Diego, says she rarely learns her schedule more than three days before the start of a workweek, and often has to work weekends and odd hours, making it hard for her to find child care. MORE

Jul. 23, 2014

Judge Ronald S Prager of Superior Court of California for the County of San Diego grants class certification for nearly 21,000 current and former Apple employees who claim tech giant failed to provide legally required meal and rest breaks. MORE

Jul. 19, 2014

New York Times readers respond to article published about difficulties surrounding part-time and on-call work. MORE

May. 20, 2014

More employers say they offer flexible work arrangements--like working from home--but these are still typically offered only to certain employees; recent studies show that many companies are in fact cutting back on programs for child leave or to care for an ill parent. MORE

Apr. 12, 2014

Agreement between labor unions and corporate representatives in France will put limits on work emails and phone calls after working hours; deal must be approved by the Labor Ministry, and will require that employers verify that 11 hour of daily 'rest' time to which all workers are legally entitled be spent uninterrupted. MORE

Mar. 24, 2014

Rachel L Swarns The Working Life column; Wall Street has been encouraging junior bankers to take weekend days off regularly, previously unthinkable in industry in which grueling schedules are embraced as badge of honor; efforts to promote work-life balance reflect significant change in corporate culture. MORE

Mar. 14, 2014

Pres Obama orders the Labor Dept to revise federal rules on overtime pay to make millions more workers eligible for extra pay when they work more than 40 hours a week. MORE

Mar. 14, 2014

McDonald's workers in California, Michigan and New York file lawsuits against company and several franchise owners, asserting that they illegally underpaid workers by erasing hours from timecards, not paying overtime and ordering them to work off the clock; lawsuits are announced by union-backed movement that is pressing nation's fast-food restaurants to increase wages to at least $15 an hour. MORE

Feb. 21, 2014

State and local officials say cities, counties, public schools and community colleges around country have limited or reduced work hours of part-time employees to 30 hours to avoid having to provide them with health insurance under Affordable Care Act; cuts to public sector employment could serve as powerful political weapon for Republican critics of law. MORE

Feb. 21, 2014

Labor Department says Chickie's & Pete's, popular chain of sports bars in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, has agreed to pay $6.8 million in back wages and damages for improperly taking tips from waiters and bartenders, and for violating minimum wage and overtime laws. MORE

Feb. 18, 2014

Pro-efficiency movement is pushing Spain, with its long siestas and late nights, to reset its clock to align the country with the rest of Europe’s 9-to-5 schedule and become more productive; what might seem logical to many non-Spaniards would represent fundamental change to Spanish life. MORE

Feb. 14, 2014

Apple releases its supplier responsibility report, noting that its hardware factories do not use any tantalum, metal commonly used in electronics, from areas engaged in warfare; also reports effort to end excessively long workweeks for supplier employees. MORE

Dec. 21, 2013

Ananda Pradnya Paramita, copywriter for Young & Rubicam Indonesia, dies shortly after posting on Twitter that she had worked for 30 consecutive hours; death generates surge of anger in Indonesia, turning Paramita into inadvertent symbol of grueling, workaholic culture of the advertising world. MORE

Oct. 23, 2013

Gov Andrew M Cuomo has signed legislation that will recognize fashion models under age of 18 as child performers; new law, which outlines working hours for underage models, will have a significant impact on casting of models for New York Fashion Week in February 2014. MORE

Jun. 14, 2013

This week’s Your Money column looks at how workers are perceived if they use a more flexible work arrangement, and particularly at how those perceptions differ among men and women. MORE

May. 17, 2013

Global monitors report that Foxconn Technology, company that manufactures Apple’s popular iPads and iPhones, has made substantial progress toward improving safety and other working conditions at three of its Chinese plants, but has so far failed to reduce average workweek to maximum allowed by Chinese law. MORE

Apr. 18, 2013

Two years after the 16-hour mandate was established for doctors in training, studies on the outcomes are being published, and the results reveal one thing: Maybe we should have thought a little harder about the arithmetic. MORE

Mar. 29, 2013

Op-Ed article by author and law Prof Steven J Harper laments law-firm culture spawned by billable-hour system used by most big law firms to charge clients; points out such system is evident in controversy surrounding firm DLA Piper; offers ways in which clients, courts and law firm leaders can reform system. MORE

Mar. 3, 2013

Preoccupations column features Smule Inc executive Prerna Gupta challenging traditional idea that workers are always most productive when in the office. MORE

Oct. 7, 2012

Professionals are often judged by their companies by the amount of time they spend at the office, but that gauge can be at odds with workplace efficiency; general ways are discussed on how professionals across all industries can improve their efficiency. MORE

Aug. 19, 2012

Op-Ed article by Jason Fried, co-founder and CEO of software company 37signals, describes how his company takes into account the seasons in designing its work schedule; contends that a dynamic work schedule increases productivity. MORE

Jun. 17, 2012

Phyllis Korkki Workstation column cites a growing body of evidence showing that taking regular breaks from mental tasks improves productivity and creativity--and that skipping breaks can lead to stress and exhaustion. MORE

Jan. 16, 2012

Some child care centers across the nation are adopting nontraditional and even 24 hour schedules as parents work extended hours, take on second jobs and accept odd shifts to make ends meet. MORE

Jan. 7, 2012

A stimulus measure by Italian Prime Min Mario Monti allows shopkeepers to set their own hours, but while some praise the move, others say it will harm already struggling mom-and-pop stores. MORE

{"type":"article","show_header_text":false,"header":"ARTICLES ABOUT WORKING HOURS","query":"(nytddes=\"Working Hours\" OR des=\"Working Hours\")","search_query":"nytddes:\"Working Hours\" OR subject:\"Working Hours\"","num_search_articles":"10","show_summary":true,"show_byline":true,"show_pub_date":true,"hide_thumbnails":false,"show_kicker":false,"show_title":false,"show_related_topics":true,"show_rad_links":true,"show_subtopics":true,"exclude_topics":"WORKING HOURS; WORKINGHOURS","more_on_header":"MORE ON WORKING HOURS AND:","alternate_index_subidx":"","show_thumbnails":true}